


Lily Evans, James Potter, a martyr complex and... chivalry

by Ginny_theQueen



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-26
Updated: 2018-07-26
Packaged: 2019-06-16 18:50:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15443526
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ginny_theQueen/pseuds/Ginny_theQueen
Summary: It's been a while since I've written anything in this fandom, so seventh year Jily it is. Two (horny) teenagers in love, a jealous ex best friend and a bunch of evil dudes. A conversation that needs to happen, and another one. Two nights in the the (not so) ordinary life of the Head Girl and Boy, Hogwarts class of 1978.Warning: Tropes.





	Lily Evans, James Potter, a martyr complex and... chivalry

Lily did not know at dinner that her evening patrol would end up in madness. Again.  
For now, she ate her pudding in uncharacteristic silence, while the rest of Gryffindor table finished supper in a rather characteristic cheerful and loud manner. Well, most of Gryffindor table did. 

James, next to her, was quietly staring at the remains of his meal in the plate in front of him. One arm draped over her shoulder and the other hand casually holding his wand where it sat on the table, he was, for once, motionless.

None of them had slept the night before, and both were still quite shaken from an event that had occurred approximately 20 hours earlier. Not that the rest of the students having a late supper in the Great Hall knew, of course. With the exception of the Marauders and the parties involved, nobody was aware of the fact that a group of seventh year Slytherins had very well tried to kill Lily the night before. 

Whether their intent had only been to crucio her or to make an example of the muggleborn Head Girl who was dating a pureblood, the infamous quartet of would-be Death Eaters Avery, Rosier, Mulciber and Nott, second in reputation at Hogwarts to the Marauders only, had nearly driven her to unconsciousness before Sirius Black had shown up. 

Lily, blame some trouble sleeping, had been on her way to the Head Students Office on the fifth floor to file point deduction papers, when the Slytherins had caught up to her, sneaking from behind, and attacked her. Sirius, truth be told, had lamented a craving for pie at exactly eleven, and had made a quick run to the Kitchens. He had then made a detour on his way back to Gryffindor tower, and had checked the Map for the purpose of avoiding Filch. Noticing Lily cornered by the enemy, he had run as fast as he could over two flights of stairs and scared the Slytherins off with the help of Peeves and a few hexes.

Sirius had not thought twice about bringing a semi-conscious Lily to the Hospital Wing where Madam Pomfrey had insisted on informing the Headmaster. Sirius in turn had informed his best mate through their two-way mirrors. Judging by how quickly James appeared in the Hospital Wing, Lily would’ve said he Apparated, if she didn’t know any better. He had fussed over his girlfriend (“How much pain are you in? Is there anything I can do? Any illegal substance I could get you to make you feel better?”), demanded the entire story from Sirius, and politely told Madam Pomfrey to shove it when she asked him to leave Lily to rest. When Dumbledore finally showed up and the story was recounted to him, the Headmaster had the heart not to ask what Sirius was doing out of his dormitory past curfew or how he had found Miss Evans. He had also asked them to keep the story to themselves for the time being. James had been furious.  
“But Professor, they could’ve killed Lily if Sirius hadn’t shown up. It’s unacceptable that they shouldn’t be punished for it.”  
“Slytherin should at least lose all their points,” Sirius suggested matter-of-factly.  
But it had been Lily’s feeble voice to answer. “Boys,” she said with a tenderness no one would’ve expected her to use with either of them a year before. “If the people who attacked me truly are working for Voldemort, we cannot waste the opportunity to watch them as closely as we can. Professor Dumbledore should not even consider expelling them, or even punishing them in any way if we don’t want them to think the administration knows they’re up to something.”   
Dumbledore only nodded at her words, and Lily went on. “Let them think we didn’t even report this… incident.”   
“Incident?” Her boyfriend repeated incredulously. “Your near death is an incident, Lil?”   
She shook her head. “Better me than a younger student. Although,” a smirk finally growing on her bruised and exhausted face, “I will dock points from Slytherin for every and any infraction, no matter how small, starting tomorrow. Nobody attacks me from behind and wins the House Cup.”   
That earned a high-five from Sirius.   
“Our Head Girl illustrated the point brilliantly,” Dumbledore said. “The staff will be informed, but I would rather you keep the events of tonight for yourselves. Miss Evans is of course exonerated from classes tomorrow and the day after if Madam Pomfrey says she needs rest, and I trust that James will kindly pass whatever notes from class she may need to stay on track.”  
With a smile at the three students and that subtle command that the Head Boy should not miss classes, he had dismissed himself.

James blamed himself all day long for not being with his girlfriend when those bastards had struck her. Going to class without her knowing she was all alone in the Hospital Wing kind of sucked. He had tried to ditch his third period to visit her, except McGonagall, with an all-knowing frown, had kindly reminded him that her classroom was the other way, Mr Potter. As if she didn’t know why he needed to go see Lily. As if James didn’t already know all about the topic they’d be covering that day.  
Lily had been dismissed from the Hospital Wing in time for supper, and James did not intend on letting her out of his sight – or touch – anytime soon.  
“James, stop,” Lily whispered in his ear when she finished her pudding.  
A terrified expression. “Are you in pain? Does your back hurt again?”   
“Stop fussing. I’m fine. You, on the other hand… you look like you’ve seen a ghost.”   
“Nearly Headless Nick is right there,” he pointed out matter-of-factly.   
“You know what I mean, muggle expression. You need to act normal or people will wonder if something happened and there’ll be rumors starting about in the next hour.” 

The Hogwarts gossip mill was a real pain in their asses. As some of the most prominent students, they were frequently mentioned in conspiracies and rumors that made no sense. Everything had become worse after they’d started dating and become somewhat public about it. (Not that Lily had let the Marauders announce it to the entire Great Hall after their successful first date like they’d intended, mind you, but students – and teachers – who paid enough attention could notice them holding hands in the corridors, and most of Gryffindor house had seen them exchange goodnight kisses on the staircase of the boys’ dormitory for the past few months now.) It was no big secret that Potter and Evans were dating, but they still tried to maintain it somewhat quiet to keep the gossip to a minimum. Last month, two fourth year Ravenclaws claimed they had witnessed Lily cry in a bathroom and spread the word that the Head Girl and Boy and fought and probably broken up, neither of which had happened, thank you very much. Lily had received about half a dozen invitations to the next Hogsmeade weekend in the next few hours and James about a dozen more before they even started having suspicions people were talking about them. You had to pay attention to gossip to hear those sorts of things, and Lily certainly did not have the time to talk about people’s lives.

“James, I swear to Godric, they’ll be saying I’m pregnant or something if you don’t put on a smile, eat something and share a joke with Sirius this instant.”   
Startled by the idea of having to fuel down such a rumor, James only replied “Yes ma’am,” before complying.   
The two remaining Marauders had of course been informed, because there were no secrets among them, and Lily’s closest friends Marlene and Mary had simply been told that a Slytherin had hexed her and that she had dealt with him. It had been easy to find an excuse for her absence in bed the previous night (James had been happy to volunteer as the excuse) but harder to explain why he had made it to class and Lily hadn’t. 

“Lily, I trust that you are more than able to defend yourself against those cowards, but hear me out when I say I won’t be getting a minute of sleep if I know you’re out there patrolling alone.”   
“James…”   
“Seriously, it’s no use if I stay in the dormitory when all I’ll be thinking about is you anyway—”   
“James—”   
“I will beg you to let me walk with you, if I have to—”   
“James!”   
“Yes, dear?”   
“I was going to say yes two minutes ago before you began your pity speech.”   
“Oh.”   
“Yes. I feel like we could use a romantic walk. We hardly ever have dates that don’t include homework and the library these days. I miss having time to just talk with you.”   
She didn’t let James’s relieved expression stop her. “I miss you.”   
His arms were around her instantly. “I miss you too, love.”   
“Let’s go and just take an hour or two to ourselves. No studying, no Head duties, no talk of Quidditch,” she added with a smile. “I mean we’ll be patrolling on my regular shift so we’re still technically executing Head tasks, but, yeah, let’s try not to catch anyone unless they’re a Slytherin, okay? I just want to enjoy tonight with you.”   
“So we’re not checking broom cupboards for snogging couples?” James asked, eyebrows raised.   
“It’d be pretty hypocrite of us,” Lily said smirking.

“I can’t believe you didn’t dock points, Head Girl Evans.”   
“Potter, they were second years and on their way to the Kitchens, I sympathized. And I’m impressed they even know where the Kitchens are, at their tender age.”   
“We knew how to get into the Kitchens our third night at Hogwarts, thank you very much.”   
“I had no doubt, Marauder mine.”   
A placid laugh, some comfortable silence, then: “James?”   
“Yes, Lil?”   
“Do you think we’ll make it out alive?”   
He gave her the only thing he would never deny her. Truth. “I don’t know.”   
“You could,” Lily said with an impossible calm. “If only you didn’t expose yourself as much.”   
They stopped walking. James took her face in his hands and stared at her, so intensely she felt her forehead might burn from it.   
“Do not think for one moment that I am fighting for you, Lily. Your blood status isn’t the reason I fight. I do it because it’s right and I’d still do it if I didn’t know you or if I was married to the very rich, very pureblood Selwyn bird my grandmother recommends. I fight because I won’t be part of a world that claims we are not all the same.”   
He caressed her face. “Oh.” She moved closer to him. It sometimes surprised her how she hadn’t noticed when they were younger just how genuinely good he was.   
“This crusade isn’t your fault. Do you hear me? I want you to know that, Lily,” the last part was barely audible even in the silence of the corridor. “… in case I die. I don’t want you to blame yourself. You’re a big part of why I fight the way I do, to protect you, but I don’t want you to think I’d be sitting on my ass if I didn’t love you.”   
“And this is why I love you,” Lily said at length. “You always speak your mind, no matter how bad it may sound. You always pick your battles, damning the consequences. It means more than you can imagine to hear your truth, James. Which is why I need to return the favor.”   
His hands were stroking her hair.   
“I love you even more for your reasons, and I still wish you didn’t fight. I am doomed anyway because of my birth, but you could be safe.”   
“I don’t want to hear this.”   
“I know. But I had to tell you.”   
“Don’t say this. Don’t say we’re doomed.”   
“I only said I am.”   
“There’s no me without you. I’d rather be dead.”   
“No. Don’t you dare, James Potter.”  
It was hard to tell who reached for who, but they collided in the middle, foreheads bumping, lips touching. Their kiss was raw, desperate. They were still holding each other in a tight embrace, as if they could never let go.   
“I love you,” Lily whispered again between kisses, eliciting a moan from him. “And I don’t want to see you hurt.”   
“We fight together,” James said at last when her mouth had left his in favor of his throat. “We stand together and if necessary we die together.”   
“That’s stupid. There’s no need for you to die.”   
“I don’t like your martyr complex.”   
“I don’t have a martyr co—” Lily’s answer was abruptly cut by James’s hand roaming underneath her uniform skirt.   
Her argument was soon forgotten. Her attention was narrowed down to James. His mouth, his fingers. And no, she didn’t much care that they were in a corridor and supposed to be patrolling. She let him distract and comfort her for a while.

Her mouth was raw on his. There was no time for delicacy, not right now. They could have delicate later, after they were done with her Head duties and once they were in a more comfortable horizontal position. For now, James’s hand performing miracles underneath her skirt, Lily didn’t much care about delicacy.   
Not until she heard someone clear their throat behind them, that is.   
Her eyes flew open and James’s head half-turned to meet their interrupter. He was growling a second later. And as her line of vision cleared and her stead cleared, she was suddenly quite furious herself. James slowly but gently disentangled their embrace and her feet touched the floor. He pointed his hand, deliciously and traitorously slick, to the intruder, probably about to curse.   
But Lily beat him to it. “Out of all the places in this goddamn castle, you had to pick this exact corridor to be lurking tonight, did you, Snape?”  
“You two…” Snape uttered, horrified. He probably didn’t even mean to speak the words out loud. It took him several moments to recoil. Something in the way his eyes flickered between James and Lily, the ghost of a shocked expression on his face, told her he wasn’t thrilled either. Then he snapped back.   
“And out of all the available hidden places in this goddamn castle,” he repeated her words with contempt, “you two had to pick this corridor to engage in your obscene activities for us all to see?”   
“It’s past curfew, Snivellus. No one should be out to see anything,” James intervened somewhat smugly.   
“Shut up, Potter. Just shut up. You fucking arsehole—”   
“Don’t speak to James like that.”   
“Lily, I can’t believe you’re really consorting with this… person.” He bowed his head. “You say I’ve changed. But you didn’t use to be charmed stupid by his tricks. You threw our friendship away to be Potter’s whore—”   
James’s wand was out in a second. “Watch your dirty mouth, Snivellus.”   
But Lily wouldn’t let him fight this fight. It was hers, and James knew it. He was mature enough to understand and accept that; he stepped aside.  
“I didn’t throw our friendship away, Severus. You did that when you started hanging out with the people who want me and my kind dead.” The worst part was that, as much as she would never admit it, it still hurt, deep down. She hated him for that. So she retaliated, just because she could. “And I’d much rather be Potter’s whore than your friend,” she said, aware that she was just being cruel now. “It comes with many benefits.”   
“I still can’t believe you let him fuck yo—”   
“Oh, the sex is certainly one of them,” Lily said with a laugh. “But the first word that comes to mind is respect. Admiration. Love. Cooperation. A willingness to listen. An incredible lack of self-pity and grease.”  
“You’re playing a dangerous game, Lily,” Snape said after a long silence. “As much as I detest Potter, The Dark Lord doesn’t like mudbloods consorting with purebloods. Even blood traitors like this swine.”   
James jumped at that one. “How do you know what Voldemort likes? Oh, right, he’s got his little Death Eaters at Hogwarts to enforce his Nazi agenda now, attacking students and spreading propaganda.”   
“Which reminds me,” Lily burst in. “What are you doing out of bed? Give me a plausible explanation before I dock an embarrassing amount of points.”  
“What I do doesn’t concern you,” Snape said harshly. But they all heard the unspoken ‘anymore’ that hung in the air between them.  
“I’d say it does,” interjected James. “Lily is Head Girl and she has every right to –”   
“Oh, that’s rich coming from you, Potter.”   
“Excuse me?”   
“This is hardly the time to bring up Head privileges. Privileges you seem to be amply abusing.”   
“You of all people want to talk about abuse? So what Lily and I are consensually engaging in ‘obscene activities’ in a deserted corridor? We’re not hurting anyone beside your sorry feelings. Shall I remind you what you and your lot were doing last night?”  
Snape’s voice dropped an octave. “You don’t know what happened last night.”  
“You’re lucky I don’t. If I had been there, you wouldn’t be alive right now. You cast a Cru—”   
“James,” Lily warned. She put both hands on his arm. “You promised you wouldn’t.”  
That stopped James. He swallowed, hard, but did not speak again.  
“Such a tight leash she has on you,” Snape commented with a dark laugh. “Who knew you could be so tame, Potter.”   
“For the last time, Snape,” Lily interjected again. “What were you doing out of bed?”   
He inclined his face, chin pointed towards them. “Maybe I was meeting a bird.”   
James’s laugh filled the corridor. “Yeah, right. Like that’s ever going to happen.”   
“I’m still going to dock those points, you know. Might as well tell the truth.”   
Snape tried to keep his face as unreadable as he could. “I told you.” But Lily had always been good at detecting his lies. James sensed her skepticism and decided to rub it in a little more.   
“Where is this girl? She stood you up, didn’t she? Poor Snivellus.”   
A cruel smile appeared on Lily’s face. “Who were you really meeting? I won’t ask again.”   
“Will you and your idiotic boytoy leave me alone?”   
“Leave you alone? You quite literally interrupted our foreplay!”   
Snape didn’t seem to like being reminded that particular bit of information, and he seemed to go pale once more.   
“Fifty points from Slytherin,” Lily declared after a moment of silence, when it was clear her former friend wasn’t going to confess.  
“Fifty? I knew Potter brainwashed you, but are you out of your fucked up mind?”   
“You were out of bed after curfew, refused to tell me why, used foul language and insulted not one but two of your superiors. And,” she added, her voice dropping low, “You called me a mudblood.”   
That alone earned a death glare from James that Lily did not pay any attention to. “And honestly, I’d dock points from you just for being the shady being you are.”   
In Snape’s defense, he had regained as much cool as could be expected. “Funny,” he hissed. “I see Lily Evans but I hear Sirius Black.”   
“I’ll take that as a compliment. And if you’re not leaving, we will.”   
Lily looked at her boyfriend, and with a conspiratorial look only said, firmly, “James?”  
The Head Boy scooted down, as if to pick something off the floor. In the dark of the corridor, it was impossible for Snape to tell what it was. Until James handed it to Lily, that is.   
“My love,” he simply responded, and his eyes shone like he had forgotten Snape was ever there. She picked the item from his hand, the soft fabric cold against her fingers, and led James down the corridor.  
And Snape wished more than anything else, even more than wishing he could unsee the previous minutes, erase the fight from his memories, he wished that Lily would tilt her head back a bit, even send a curse his way. She didn’t. And neither did Potter, one hand in his stupid hair and one on her waist as he brought the hand that was holding her underwear to his mouth and kissed her small palm gently.

They stopped after one flight of stairs, once they were sure Snape wasn’t following them and could not hear them. James was looking at her as if he had never seen her before.  
“Disappointed that I’m not a saint?” she asked. A tinge of bitterness could be heard, and she did not care. “I never said I was nice.”   
“I never said I was disappointed.”   
Smoother and faster than she expected, James spun her around so that she was facing him directly. He did not let go.   
“On the contrary,” James continued in with velvet voice. “I love it when you stand up for yourself. Even though every inch of me is aching to intervene.”   
Lily kissed him once and chuckled. “Who knew chivalry could allow such a thing?”  
“What can I say, I am a sucker for empowered women. Especially this one.” His lips met hers, traitorously slow. “What do you think, enough patrolling for one night?”   
“Let’s get to bed and forget all about this.”   
“Your wish is my command, milady.” He said this and unceremoniously swept her off her feet, and kept walking, despite her laughter and weak protests.   
“James! Let me down!”   
“Well, my love, I can’t make it look like chivalry is completely dead, now, can I?”

**Author's Note:**

> ..... aaaaand sex in the dormitory it is.
> 
> Wow. Thank you for sticking with me until the very end of this incredibly plain oneshot. If you were expecting more from this fic, so was I, believe me. But it's been so long and I honestly just wanted to get it out. I've got more coming though *crowd boos*
> 
> Thank you to Claudia for making me publish this. You are the Potter to my Evans.


End file.
